Petrol And Diesel Prices In India Unlikely To Rise Despite Tensions In West Asia

Situation in the crude oil market seems to be stabilising despite the tensions in the Gulf region with analysts expecting the market to cool off in the coming days. Tensions between Israel and Iran led to a 13 per cent spurt in Brent crude prices in the past seven days, with the benchmark crude hitting $79.4 per barrel on October 7, up from $70.2 just a week earlier. The Indian government is confident of shielding the country from any fallout in case of crude oil supplies being hit by an escalation in the tensions. “Today there is more oil available in the world than there is consumption”, said Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, adding, “If some parties hold back on availability there are new suppliers on the market also, in the short to medium term I do not see any shortage of oil in the world. There is enough oil available and we have enough choices to exercise.” Currently, India imports 88 per cent of its crude oil requirements from 39 countries, leaving it exposed to the vagrancies of the market.